Saudi developer Dar Al Arkan opens office in China to drive global growth
Dar Al Arkan, the leading real estate company in Saudi Arabia, continues its dynamic growth momentum by announcing the opening of its office in Beijing, China. The announcement is in line with the Dar Al Arkan’s strategic expansion and builds on spreading the leading Saudi Arabian brands globally.
Dar Al Arkan’s Beijing office will serve multiple functions to allow for joint ventures between Dar Al Arkan and leading Chinese real estate developers for the Chinese and the Saudi market, further increasing and facilitate collaboration between Saudi Arabia and China and enhance investment and knowledge sharing opportunities. The office will primarily promote cooperation and partnerships within the real-estate and technology sectors to exchange and implement global best practices in these respective industries
Dar Al Arkan recently appointed Guo Jiancheng as General Manager for Dar Al Arkan’s office in Beijing to lead the company’s operations in China. Following the announcement Jiancheng commented: “Over its 27-year history in Saudi Arabia Dar Al Arkan has pioneered a distinctive approach to development, introduced new technologies, and raised the benchmark for the real-estate and technology sectors in the Kingdom. With this expertise and industry know-how, the company is well-positioned to take this knowledge and creativity to a global level and promote it as best practice. By entering into the Chinese market, Dar Al Arkan is also well positioned to enhance relations between the Kingdom and China across multiple fronts.”
Dar Al Arkan’s office will act as a hub to support Chinese companies and investors seeking expansion, company formation and investment opportunities in the Kingdom. By providing access to required information, permits, legal and financial knowledge, as well as support on partnerships and other requirements, Dar Al Arkan is making entry into the Kingdom more accessible.
Likewise, the office will support Saudi Arabian companies to explore expansion opportunities and gain entry into the Chinese market. Furthermore, will encourage other areas for mutual collaboration, especially in tourism and cultural exchanges.
Starting in 2021, Dar Al Arkan has embarked on a global expansion drive starting with the announcement of its Sidra project in Bosnia last March, followed by the launch of two luxury co-branded towers in the United Arab Emirates in collaboration with luxury fashion brand, Missoni, and hypercar manufacturer, Pagani Automobili, respectively. The company also announced expansion into the Qatari and Omani markets through premium residential and commercial projects.
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AlUla Design Award makes its debut at the Saudi Design Festival
In its inaugural edition, the AlUla Design Award (ADA) launched an Open Call, inviting Saudi, regional and international designers to deliver product concepts inspired by the heritage, nature and art of AlUla – a spectacular desertscape with an oasis, and the heart of the ancient Incense Road.
More than 400 submissions were received and reviewed by an esteemed jury panel, tasked with selecting six winners of the award from each of the VIP Gifting and Commercial Retail categories. AlUla Design Award will be presented in a special pavilion at the Saudi Design Festival in JAX District, Diriyah, Riyadh between January 10-29, 2022. The pavilion includes multiple sections for exploration: a sensory experience rich with the aesthetics and materiality of AlUla, an Inspired by AlUla presentation exhibiting previously-designed products, and the winners showcase that will reveal the journey of the participants in the competition.
The AlUla Design Award pavilion will also stage keynotes from experts and practitioners, and host the award ceremony happening on the 26th of January, 2022. The selected winners will have their designs produced and presented at AlUla’s cultural retail outlets and through a range of communication platforms.
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Designs unveiled for Saudi Arabia’s captivating Desert Rock mountain resort
We often talk about immersive experiences in the context of virtual reality, but The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) in Saudi Arabia is taking the concept a step further by carving a luxury hotel into a rock mountain for its future guests to literally immerse themselves in.
Set in one of the most dramatic desert landscapes in the world, the Desert Rock resort is being integrated into the stunning mountainside and offers panoramic views of the mountain canyons below and a canopy of stars above.
As part of The Red Sea Project, TRSDC recently revealed a first look at Desert Rock’s designs, which are intended to celebrate Saudi Arabia’s spectacular natural beauty and Nabatean heritage.
“Since the inception of the Desert Rock project, creating a development that combines luxury, sustainability and an immersive experience for our guests has been at the heart of it all,” said John Pagano, TRSDC CEO. “We cannot wait to welcome guests to enjoy a stay at this unique property.”
Inspired by the surrounding beautiful mountains, volcanoes and wadis, Desert Rock will feature 48 villas and 12 hotel suites. A variety of accommodation styles will be available to best meet guests needs, from ground level dwellings to crevice hotel suites midway up the mountain.
An impressive feat of engineering, a select number of rooms will sit within the excavated rock-scape, giving guests access to stunning views of Saudi Arabia and opportunities for star gazing, all from the comfort of your room.
The unique rock formations included in the resort architecture were produced by a series of cataclysmic seismic events thousands of years ago, and so the architecture has been designed to keep this natural beauty while also reducing energy consumption, supercharging the ecosystem, and regenerating native flora. This innovative architecture model offers guests a completely unique and unmatched form of luxury, combining nature and sustainability as one.
“Desert Rock offers a ‘never before seen’ opportunity for guests to connect physically and metaphysically with one of the most dramatic desert landscapes in the world,” said Chad Oppenheim, Founder of Oppenheim Architecture, the design and planning firm behind the concept. “Our key intention when designing the resort was to build with the land, not on it, and to be mindful of the stunning nature elements that already exist at the site, amplifying its natural beauty.”
Guests will enter the resort through a hidden valley nestled between the mountains. Most roads leading into the resort will follow the edge of the main wadi, hidden behind landscape mounds, to provide uninterrupted views. This will also minimise sound and light pollution, allowing guests to fully absorb the surrounding dramatic desert landscape.
The resort features state-of-the-art facilities, including a world-class spa and fitness centre, remote destination dining areas as well as a feature lagoon oasis.
Visitors will be able to hike with members of the local community who will provide educational tours of the area. Dune buggies will also be on hand to hire as part of the site-wide activities program, making it the idyllic holiday destination for those seeking adventure and relaxation alike.
TRSDC is championing the ancient history of the area, which is positioned at the crossroads of continents, connecting Asia, Africa, and Europe. For centuries, Saudi Arabia has been a meeting point for civilisations and a crossing point for caravans on the incense trade route carrying spices, myrrh, cotton, ebony, and silk.
The Nabateans – an ancient Arab people who inhabited northern Arabia and the southern Levant and who are perhaps best known for their rock-cut monumental tombs in Petra, Jordan – inhabited Saudi Arabia’s north-western region some 2,000 years ago and constructed their second largest city there at Mada’in Salih, a few hours’ drive from Desert Rock.
The Desert Rock resort will be open for guests to visit as part of phase one of the Red Sea destination set to complete in 2023.
Desert Rock Destination Key Take-aways: Desert Rock will feature 48 villas and 12 hotel suites, a total of 60-keys with a select number excavated within the rock massif itself. Where possible, materials used in the architecture are recycled from the site and have the same integral colours as the surrounding landscape to further immerse the architecture in its setting. During daylight, the natural silhouette of Desert Rock and its respective shadows will prevail. At night, the glow of the architectural lighting from within the destination, not upon the rock will be visible to those passing by. The destination includes a world-class spa and fitness centre, as well as a feature lagoon. Guests will be able to stargaze, hike and use dune buggies all on the Desert Rock site to explore nature and cultural heritage of the region. |
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Art Deco Design: Best luxury interior design studio in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, occupying most of the Arabian Peninsula, is home to a vast mass of desert, ancient history, rich culture and a new young and modern society blooming. Progressive and world-leading strides make Saudi Arabia a treasure trove of global attractions, historical icons and a link to a time gone by. Part of Saudi Arabia’s special fusion of elements is its architectural and design industries. The recent focus of public interest is that of Art Deco Design, which has claimed the title of Best Luxury Interior Design Studio in Saudi Arabia 2021, awarded by the New York-based Luxury Lifestyle Awards.
Art Deco architecture is characterised by its use of glass, with the use of openings in walls and windows developed to allow light to enter and for decoration. Windows are framed with square, rectangular, or round pieces of glass. The window openings are punctured by decorative elements, such as leaves or even the decorative style of the window itself.
“Art Deco” is a style of the 1920s that is characterised by geometric forms arranged in a geometric fashion. It takes its name from the international exhibition held in Paris in 1925 at the Galerie d’Art Moderne (later the Museum of Modern Art). With this context in mind, Art Deco Design creates iconic designs, ranging from luxury residential homes to large-scale projects, commercial outlets and facades, all clearly expressing this timeless style.
Nabeeh Afarah, is the Executive Director of Art Deco Design responded to the announcement of their award saying ‘we strive daily to place our best and cutting-edge skillset to task. Receiving this award is of immense importance to the team and I, as a realisation of what you can achieve when you put your mind to it. I extend my gratitude to the Luxury Lifestyle Awards’.
Some interesting history and facts about Art Deco:
● Art Deco is a modern art movement that uses bold shapes, bright colours, geometric forms, and stylised representations of everyday objects. It was the result of a collaborative creative effort by many designers and artists from around the world.
● Other than architecture, Art Deco design is also applied in furniture, jewellery, clothing, and automobiles. Its distinctive geometric patterns are a defining feature of its style.
● The distinctive Art Deco style went out of fashion, but was revived in the late ’60s and have become an evergreen influence.
● Art Deco designs can be seen in posters and ads from this era. Fonts that were popular at the time often had an interesting design or a unique choice of typeface to make the text stand out. The typical Art Deco font style creates a balanced thickness and thinness between parts of letters.
● Classic art deco style was created with geometric, rectangular forms and ornate, curved elements.
● Art Deco architecture uses light-filled spaces in an elegant fashion. The windows are either square or round, and the walls feature punctured openings.
Their work is only carried out by experts within their field, and they place great importance on getting the work delivered on time. Transparent and fluid communication with their clients is also a key factor attributed to their success, so their clients are always fully informed of the project status at hand.
Contact Art Deco Design should you wish to develop something extraordinary, in this classic, and celebrated style.
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AECOM partners with Royal Commission for AlUla to provide training to the local community in North West Saudi Arabia
Partnering with the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), AECOM is delivering project management and leadership training to the local community of AlUla, supporting RCU’s strategic mission to develop the region’s human capital and build a thriving economy.
“RCU is one of our key government clients with whom we are partnering to transform the country under Saudi Vision 2030,” said AECOM’s Soner Keskinel, Vice President, Program Management and Construction Management (PMCM) in Saudi Arabia. “As we develop the heritage-rich AlUla into a world-class destination for nature and culture, an important responsibility is ensuring the local people have the skills that will prepare them for success in the modern job market, enabling them to be active participants in the region’s economic and cultural development.”
The program is being delivered virtually using AECOM’s global learning management platform, with content developed in close collaboration between RCU leaders and subject-matter experts from AECOM’s local team, as well as regional and global resources. Designed with careful consideration to the needs of the local community, the program consists of seven leadership and project management modules that combine guided, expert-led sessions with self-study and online assessments, ending with a case study assessment.
Mohamed S. Alshamari, Chief Economic and Social Development Officer at RCU, said: “HRH Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s vision puts developing people before place. So at the heart of establishing AlUla as a vibrant cultural destination is developing our community’s skills-base, creating new economic opportunities and improving their quality of life. Such large-scale transformation is best achieved through public-private partnerships similar to the collaboration between RCU and AECOM.”
The first cohort of the training program successfully ran from 21 March 21-May 31, 2021, with 94 participants. The second cohort will be welcomed in August.
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Sazar Design creates a modern, American style atmosphere for Beef Stock Restaurant in Saudi Arabia
Established in 2013, Sazar Design is a creative firm which is firmly committed to the scientific art of interior design. Its expert team of engineers and designers are constantly striving to further their understanding and knowledge of this immersive and all-encompassing field, so they can help their clients achieve their dreams in creating the perfect environment for the mind, body, and soul.
From interiors and exteriors, residential homes to commercial buildings and offices, Sazar Design is dedicated to enhancing the environment of a given area or building to create a healthier, more aesthetically-pleasing space. Its mission is to provide its clients to creative concepts, high-quality design, beauty, and flawless execution.
By making sure that each project is tailored to each individual clients taste, requirement and budget, Sazar Design ultimately creates a bespoke end result which is every bit as unique and individual as their clients. This was why the owners of Beef Stock Restaurant in Saudi Arabia knew exactly who to turn to.
They were looking for a restaurant design which was able to combine luxury with an exuberant, American-style atmosphere. After consulting with the clients, Sazar Design set to work and with an innovative use of colour, lighting, furnishings and indoor planting, gave Beef Stock restaurant a unique, fresh, contemporary look which made it the perfect go-to place for relaxed but stylish American dining, exactly as the client wanted.
This made it a clear winner of Luxury Lifestyle Awards in the category of The Best Luxury Commercial Interior Design for the project Beef Stock restaurant in Saudi Arabia.
This project clearly shows the vision of Sazar Design, which is to deliver interior design concepts with a world-class service. It takes pride in the fact that it listens closely to what its clients are looking for with each project, working with them side-by-side from the start of the project to completion, and making sure that every detail is considered and executed to the best of the ability of its expert teams of designers and engineers.
Clients who contact Sazar Design are first given an extensive consultation before deciding whether to move onto the commissioning of the project, as the company believes it is crucial to have the time and space to consider the various ideas and options open to them. Taking the time to debate all the possibilities at the very start of the project is the best way to ensure that the end result is exactly what the client was hoping for – and hopefully even surpass expectations.
Using a whole range of the very latest in interior design techniques including 3D design technology as well as more intimate methods such as mood boards, plans and detailed drawing, Sazar Design is able to clearly show the myriad of possibilities to each client.
Whether it is changing the mood of a room thanks to lighting, innovative use of colour or using custom-made furniture, Sazar Design’s experts are on hand to convey the rich tapestry of design tools including Feng Shui. In large spaces landscaping can transform an environment and Sazar Design will supply a fully-qualified visiting site supervisor who, during the course of the works, will take full control of the interior package for the project.
By guiding and working closely with its clients, Sazar Design is able to create truly unique projects which bring to life exactly what the client had only been able to dream of – until now.
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Majid Al Futtaim appoints AECOM to deliver consultancy services for Mall of Saudi project
Majid Al Futtaim has awarded a four-year contract to global infrastructure consulting firm AECOM to provide lead consultancy services for its flagship Mall of Saudi development.
With the project set to break ground in Q4 this year, the announcement marks an important step in further delivering Majid Al Futtaim’s master-planned landmark mixed-use development, Riyadh North. The development is situated in the fastest growing zone in the city and provides an unparalleled gateway to brands and partners who are seeking to access a dynamic young population with a high appreciation of best in class retail, leisure and F&B.
AECOM’s contract will see the firm deliver lead design consultancy for pre-contract and post contract construction supervision for Mall of Saudi which is expected to house over 600 stores across 300,000sqm gross leasable area. Mall of Saudi is envisaged as an integrated lifestyle destination that will host the largest ski slope and snow park in the Middle East, luxury hotels and branded residences covering approximately 2,000 keys and spanning 214,000 square meters of built-up area.
The mall will feature a flagship Carrefour hypermarket and 31 VOX Cinema screens, including the world’s largest IMAX, and a Magic Planet. To date, leasing progress for the flagship retail space stands at approximately 50% of the gross leasable area for both issued and signed proposals, excluding Ski Saudi.
Ahmed Galal Ismail, Chief Executive Officer at Majid Al Futtaim – Properties, said: “The contract appointment with AECOM marks a major milestone for the Riyadh North development and is a meaningful step in the progression of Majid Al Futtaim’s anchor development, Mall of Saudi. As a long-term private sector partner, Majid Al Futtaim is fully committed to investing in the Kingdom and ensuring that its retail, leisure and real estate projects play a meaningful role in contributing to Vision 2030. We look forward to breaking ground on this exciting project in Q4 this year, bringing us closer to ensuring Riyadh takes its position on the global map as a top 10 city destination and to unlocking future foreign direct investment by acting as a landmark global development.”
Hamed Zaghw, Chief Executive, AECOM Middle East & Africa, commented: “We are delighted that Majid Al Futtaim has chosen AECOM to deliver its flagship retail destination in Saudi Arabia. The award is testament to our strong relationship with Majid Al Futtaim and their trust in our integrated offer, global reach, and local knowledge. The win reaffirms our commitment to supporting Vision 2030 through the delivery of large-scale, transformational projects that create long-lasting impact in the communities they serve.”
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This is how Tiffany & Co.’s first flagship store in Saudi Arabia looks like!
Tiffany & Co. is has unveiled a new boutique at the Mode, Al Faisaliah Mall, part of the Al Faisaliah development in Olaya district, ushering in a new era for Tiffany in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The boutique will be Tiffany’s flagship in Saudi Arabia, and 16th in the Middle East, and is now open to the public.
The almost 9000sqft new boutique at Mode, Al Faisaliah will be the pinnacle of the region’s Tiffany shopping experience, featuring luxurious private salons to host high jewellery previews and exclusive client events. Amazonite features and white marble detailing welcome customers into the world of Tiffany, elegantly showcasing a complete range of Tiffany & Co. jewellery.
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